Rio Ferdinand was a player who attempted to get him to knuckle down and focus, without success, but clearly keeps a keen on the development of the teenager he once knew.

Ahead of West Ham's 0-0 draw at Southampton, Ferdinand tweeted that he was looking forward to catching Morrison in action, and received a barrage of responses in return.

Asked how good he was, the United defender said that only Joe Cole and Michael Owen compared, neither of who he saw at Old Trafford.

Better than his teammate at the time, Paul Pogba and United's flavour of the moment Adnan Januzaj? Yes, according to Rio, but of course, Morrison's attitude has seen his development stall.

Nonetheless it's exciting for West Ham fans, for if he can get close to fulfilling that potential - the Hammers may just have England's best young talent on their hands, and this could well be the season he emphasises what United gave up on.

Watching Southampton vs west ham....great to see some young English talent on show. Want to see Ravel Morrison fulfil that huge potential...

Dan Coombs

Dan Coombs is a writer who is keen to embrace the internet revolution. He first started writing for us in June 2011 and commenced his new role as Sports Editor in February 2012.
As a trained journalist he has met famous faces from Mr T to Boris Johnson. He once featured in an England World Cup music video too, but it did not make the charts.
He grew up wanting to be a Formula 1 driver, but it looks like this dream has passed him by. Instead, he hopes you enjoy reading his writing on our site, as we seek to debate the day's sporting hot topics.